Tools or weapons used by cree indians

These weapons were created and used for one of five reasons: striking, piercing, cutting, defense, and symbolism. This article takes a look at some of the most common weapons used by Native American tribes.

Bows and arrows have existed for at least 8, years and offer long range reach. The arrow has a small, sharp tip attached to a wooden shaft with a slit at the end. The bow is an arced piece of material, like wood or bone, with a cord attaching the two ends. The split in the arrow is fitted over the cord, pulled back, and released in order to shoot the arrow toward its target. The atlatl, another piercing weapon, is a tool used to throw spears with accuracy.

It is a hollowed out tube with a container at one end. This cup holds the spear. The length of the shaft gives the thrower more speed.

Lances are very similar to spears, however, are much longer. The tip of the lance is also bigger than that found on the spear. The size allowed Native Americans to use them while riding horses. Spears are fashioned from a long shaft or pole-shaped material, usually wood.

One end was either sharpened into a point or attached to a sharp, stone tip. Native Americans could throw the spears to reach long distances or thrust them into animals or enemies. Knives were an important cutting tool for Native Americans. The oldest of these were made of a wooden handle and a stone or bone blade. The blades were always short. After the arrival of Europeans, the blades were made of steel or iron. Knives could be used for killing animals or preparing food.

The pipe tomahawk was both a hatchet type weapon as well as a pipe for smoking. They were made of a hollow handle with an axe-like blade and tobacco holding chamber on one end. Indigenous peoples could use these for hand-to-hand combat or as throwing weapons.

Over time, the pipe tomahawk became a ceremonial instrument used principally for smoking. Because of their importance, young men learned from the time that they could stand how to handle them, and were also taught how to construct them from their older male relatives. Early immigrant-travelers on the plains, such as Alexandre Henry, noted that even after the introduction of firearms, men never went anywhere without a bow and arrows.

Many chroniclers left accounts of just how proficient the people were with them. He noted that men could often let fly eight arrows before the first one reached the ground! The bows were also powerful, as mentioned by Paul Kane in his travels. To enable men to efficiently use bows and arrows from horseback once horses were available , Plains bows and arrows are uniquely designed and constructed for mounted use.

This layering of sinew and glue has the effect of making the bow faster-shooting, more powerful, and sturdier against breakage avg. Some men would even go a step further by gluing rattlesnake skins over-top of the sinew backing, to protect the backing from the weather. Truly a weapon for any age, there are men from many of our Buffalo-Nations that continue to make and use our distinctive archery equipment of the Plains.